Remembering 2012 — No. 1: Derecho rips through Eastern Panhandle

December 31, 2012

MARTINSBURG - Seemingly overnight, area residents learned the definition of "derecho." On June 29, the Eastern Panhandle, and much of the state of West Virginia, were brutally hit by a series of storms that left many without power and water in the staggering heat of summer.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has defined a derecho as a "wide-spread, long-lived wind storm that is associated with rapidly moving thunderstorms." By this definition, the swath of the storm spreads more than 240 miles, and includes wind gusts of at least 58 mph.

The storm, which hit on a Friday, resulted in trucks filled with ice and water coming to Martinsburg from as far away as Alabama.

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Many shipments arrived that Monday, after residents suffered over the weekend, during which time scores of refrigerators were emptied of their spoiled contents.

By the end of the storm, 5,790 customers in Berkeley County were without power, 2,511 customers in Martinsburg alone, along with 5,838 in Jefferson County and 719 in Morgan County.

"I'm actually getting used to it. Saturday and Sunday were a nightmare," Jim Tyner of Files Crossroads said while waiting for ice. Tyner, like many other residents, used well water, and had no other choice but to search for water elsewhere.

In the storm's aftermath, Sen. Jay Rockefeller sent a letter to President Obama, requesting that the White House declare 45 counties in West Virginia, including Jefferson County, a federal disaster area.

After approval, the declaration allowed for federal agencies to provide assistance to help not only the state and local governments, but also families and individuals.

"Now they will get much of the assistance they need to get back on their feet," Rockefeller said of the local communities. "I'm glad the president and FEMA agreed that this designation is critical for the state, as the past few weeks have been hard on many families who are trying to regain some normalcy in their lives."

Cooling stations were set up around the affected areas, while Jefferson County Homeland Security and Emergency Management activated its Emergency Operations Center.

"I think the two substations that were affected the most were located near Martinsburg. When they went, they took a lot of stuff out in Martinsburg, plus the winds and so forth," Steve Allen, Berkeley County director of homeland security and emergency management, said the Monday after the storm.

"We are all one big neighborhood, and we need to take care of each other," Allen said.